[WikiEN-l] Secondary sources

[WJhonson at aol.com]

In a message dated 8/25/2009 6:50:03 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
andrewrturvey at googlemail.com writes:


> Not quite. The first publication can be a secondary source, for instance 
> if the New York Times publishes an article on a car accident. A primary 
> source is something like a census return or, in this case, a witness 
> statement. >>
> 
------------------------

That is not correct Andrew.  Each "source" must be published.  Typically 
witness statements are not themselves published.  You are confusing first-hand 
experience with primary source.  A primary souce, even a census return is 
not first-hand, it's merely first publication.

If you took you example to extreme, then there would be no primary sources 
at all.

W.J.